real, raw motherhood
Warning! This essay might be upsetting, especially if you know me in real life. I wrote it because writing is how I process my emotions. I am sharing this here and hope it may help others who have suffered similarly. My mother liked to point to the big scar running down from her belly button…
I was recently interviewed by Rachel Nielsen for her awesome 3in30 podcast. The episode aired on 05/13/19. You can listen to episode 081 here. The essay below is what I wrote in preparation for the interview and sent to Rachel. Rachel, I’ve been using traveling and jetlag as reasons why I hadn’t yet written my takeaways on the…
Ask and you shall receive. This, I believe with all my heart. Call it God’s answers to prayers. Call it the Universe conspiring. Call it the power of affirmations. Call it the magic of visualization. Call it coincidence. Call it miracle. Call it whatever you want so long as you can embrace it and let…
In honor of my 43rd birthday coming up at the end of the month, here is a list of 43 things that I’ve done, learned, bought or changed to make my life better. (In no particular order) 1: I quit eating meat. (21 years ago). 2: I quit smoking. I come from a country where…
“Why am I not good? Why am I not perfect?”, my daughter lamented the other night. “You ARE good but you’re right, you are not perfect. That’s because nobody’s perfect. Your Daddy is not perfect. I am not perfect…But… You know what I’m perfect at? I’m perfect at making progress. That’s all that’s required. To…
Today’s Valentine’s day and my planner’s journaling prompt read: “What type of love is most important to you?”. As much as I value the romantic love that joins me to my husband and the maternal love that bonds me to my daughter, self-love is what I find most important. Not ego. Not vanity. Self-Love. Forgiveness.…
We celebrated her 9th birthday last week. 9 years “old”. Half way to 18. It goes by so fast. Everyone says it because it’s true. But when you’re deep in the trenches of motherhood, and tired day in day out, it’s hard to stand back and get perspective. Then one day you realize the baby…
In August 2018, I was awarded my black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu by my teacher-and husband– Burton Richardson. Noone was more surprised than me that day. It happened so much earlier than I had expected. When the first burst of shock and excitement had subsided, two questions crowded out every other thought in my…
It’s a new year! I love new years. I love fresh starts. Goals to set. Resolutions to make. January may be one of my favorite months of the year. Full of hope and possibilities. 2018 was good to me. It was filled with travels, good health, achievements (I earned my black belt in Jiu Jitsu)…
I have just finished reading The Paper Bag Christmas. With each chapter, my heart swelled up until it finally burst open and I lay sobbing in my bed. A Christmas miracle had jumped from the pages into my heart. I sensed my true essence. I wanted to bottle it up for safe keeping. I wanted to…